Sen. Ed Markey will win the Democratic nomination for US Senate in Massachusetts, CNN’s Decision Desk projects, fending off a primary challenge from Rep. Seth Moulton as he seeks a third full term.
In a year that has seen the ouster of several veteran Democrats at the hands of younger candidates running to their left, 80-year-old Markey cast himself as the more, progressive anti-establishment option in his showdown with Moulton, a six-term congressman who has bucked party leadership at times.
“Tonight is a testament to the power of the progressive movement,” Markey told supporters at the historic Omni Parker House in Boston Tuesday night. “It is a progressive movement fueled by young people, demanding more from their leaders, and it’s your voices that are the ones we need to hear right now.”
“Generational change isn’t about compromising to do the small things better. It’s about fighting to do the big things best,” he added.
It was one of several key nominating contests in deep-blue Massachusetts that tested voters’ appetite for change at a time when the party base is widely dissatisfied with congressional Democrats’ efforts to oppose President Donald Trump. By and large, however, they opted to stick with the status quo.
